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Brady HendersonESPN
SEATTLE – In a surprise move, the Seattle Seahawks and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer split up after three seasons.
The Seahawks announced the decision Tuesday, citing “philosophical differences” as the reason for the farewell, while calling Schottenheimer a “wonderful person and coach.”
The Seahawks scored the most points in franchise history last season, but their attack dropped sharply in the second half. Seattle led the league in offensive scoring with 34 points per game for the first nine weeks, but that average dropped to 22.6 points per game for the last eight weeks of the regular season.
The Seahawks’ offensive battle continued in a 30-20 end-of-season loss against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC wildcard playoff game three days ago. Quarterback Russell Wilson’s 40.7% completion rate on 11-of-27 passes equaled second lowest in his career, while his 17.6 Total QBR was his worst in 16 playoff games in his career, according to ESPN research Stats & Information.
The Seahawks’ deep passes were one of the reasons for the decline in the attack in the second half. Wilson completed at least one pass from 30 air yards in each of Seattle’s first eight games of the season; he had a total of three such completions in the last nine games of the season, including playoffs.
Coach Pete Carroll declined to discuss the future of his coordinators when asked at his season-ending press conference if he expected them to return.
Schottenheimer’s breach set some Seahawks records, but after meeting last night, it was clear there were philosophical differences between Schottenheimer and Carroll, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported. They decided that a divorce was in the best interests of both parties.